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       GILGIT: Six people were killed and five injured in two separate road accidents in Skardu and Astore districts of Gilgit Baltistan on Sunday.

       According to Rescue 1122, in one of the accidents, a car was hit by a landslide near Malupa village of Roundu Valley in Skardu on Sunday afternoon.

       The vehicle, travelling from Skardu to Shangus, was suddenly buried under the massive amount of falling debris.

       Police described the scene as “horrific” as the vehicle was swept away by the landslide, leaving no chance for passengers to escape. Rescue teams were immediately dispatched to the scene to launch a search and rescue operation. Officials confirmed that five people had lost their lives in the accidents.

       The victims’ identities have not been revealed yet, with police saying that all of them belonged to the Shangus village of Roundu. Pakistan Army, police, GB scout, Rescue 1122 and local volunteers took part in the operation to retrieve dead bodies.

       The bodies of two passengers were yet to be found.

       In the second mishap, a jeep coming from Mirm-alik in northern Astore to district headquarters skidded at Chogam, killing one person and injuring five others.

       According to police, eight people, including a woman, were travelling in the jeep.

       Locals rescued the injured and shifted them to the District Head-quarters Hospital. Four of the injured were later moved to Gilgit for medical treatment.

       The injured belonged to Mirmalik and Astore areas, while the deceased, a 28-year-old man, was an employee of the Waste Management Department.

       Locals have lamented that the region’s roads have become a “deathtrap” for travellers, and many lives are lost due to landslides.

       A number of locals and tourists have lost their lives on the Baltistan Road after being caught in landslides, a routine occurrence in winter.

       Moreover, in the winter season, roads become slippery after snowfall and freezing ice, multiplying the perils for vehicles.Locals have claimed that poor road design and the absence of tunnels in landslide-prone areas put people’s lives in danger.

       Published in Dawn, December 16th, 2024